With
a mild front coming through (and even the threat of a little rain), it was
looking like the migrant show in Cameron County might be good! Started the count with a singing Mockingbird
(1) and flyover Killdeer (2) outside the apartment. Drove straight to Resaca de la Palma State
Park, arriving an hour before dawn, where I wound up adding Pauraque (3) even
before I got to the park, as they were sitting on the road! Once at the dirt lot just outside the gate I
just set up my chair and enjoyed the dawn chorus: like last year, the White-winged Doves (4)
were dominant, but also added Couch’s Kingbird (5), and thankfully heard the
Screech Owls (6) trilling! A
Yellow-billed Cuckoo (7) let loose, followed by (in order of appearance J) Brown-crested
Flycatcher (8), White-tipped (9) and Mourning Doves (10), Common Nighthawk
(11), Cardinal (12), Great Horned Owl (13), Altamira Oriole (14) right
overhead, Green Jay (15), flyover Red-winged Blackbirds (16), Olive Sparrow
(17), Carolina Wren (18, that actually sat up and showed itself J), Kiskadee (19),
noisy Great-tailed Grackles (20), and Golden-fronted Woodpecker (21). It was light enough to wander by then, so I
went into the main parking area to see if I could nab this Yellow-green Vireo
that was reported earlier. Added
Black-crested Titmouse (22), and an Inca Dove (23) that was singing near the
buildings, along with a laughing Ladder-backed Woodpecker (24). Was actually heading out when I heard some
clipped, House Sparrow-like phrases coming from where some yellow Caution tape
was stretched across some of the lot, and sure enough, there was the
Yellow-green Vireo (25), singing away! I
ran into a British couple on the way back to my car and told them about it, and
thankfully the thing came to us and
started singing robustly! By then the
Chachalacas (26) were tuning up, and on the way north along New Carmen Road
added Harris’ Hawk (27) on a pole, and a Barn Swallow (28) swooping by. In the fields heard both Blue Grosbeak (29),
Bobwhite (30), and Eastern Meadowlark (31).
The
next stop was Sabal Palm Sanctuary, and by taking the “scenic route” through
urban Brownsville (with the window down) was able to add House Sparrow (32),
Rock Pigeon (33), Laughing Gull (34), Starling (35), and Tropical Kingbird
(36)! Once on the entrance road I heard
White-eyed Vireo (37), and in the parking area a Hooded Oriole (38) wheeped,
Black-bellied Whistling Ducks (39) flew overhead, and a Bronzed Cowbird (40)
sang his distinctive song. After
checking in picked up the Buff-bellied Hummingbird (41) in the garden, and a
stroll along the Resaca Trail added Long-billed Thrasher (42), the
“Brownsville” Yellowthroat (43), and by a miracle I actually spotted a Gray
Hawk (44) in a tree (didn’t hang around for pictures, though…)! A Groove-billed Ani (45) gave his squeaky calls,
but the Vireo Trail had the treasures:
both male and female American Redstarts (46) came in close, along with a
beautiful Magnolia Warbler (46)! A
Catbird (48) also showed up, but the star of the show was a knockout male
Blackburnian Warbler (49)! A couple of
other things showed but I just couldn’t get good looks; one bird looked like it
morphed from a Tennessee Warbler to an Orange-crowned Warbler to a Philadelphia
Vireo, so I just let that one go… I was
surprised to hear an Acadian Flycatcher (50) give a little bit of his Whatzup! song! The pond at the big blind was surprisingly
productive, with several Pied-billed Grebes (51), a Green Kingfisher (52)
claiming the dead snag that the Ringed Kingfisher had claimed on a previous
trip, plenty of Blue-winged Teal (53), a Little Blue Heron (54), and a Greater
Yellowlegs (55) that flew in. A Bank
Swallow (56) chattered as it shot by, and back up on the main trail a
Rose-breasted Grosbeak (57) gave its pik
call. Picked up Lesser Goldfinch (58) on
the way back to the parking lot, and added a flyover Tricolored Heron (59) just
before jumping in the car!
Green Kingfisher
Old
Port Isabel Road was next, and a short stop where the road turns to dirt added
Rough-winged Swallow (60). Stopping at
the traditional falcon viewing area just past the canal added some Gull-billed
Terns (61) batting around, plus a singing Lark Sparrow (62) on the wire, but I
was really bummed when I looked at the nesting platform and didn’t see a falcon
L. But a little extra looking found him on a
small tree nearby – Aplomado Falcon for #63!
Down the road the Willets (64) were calling and displaying, and picked
up a Curve-billed Thrasher (65) flying into a bush. In the open fields was tickled pink to hear
my FOS Botteri’s Sparrows (66) along with the ever-present Cassin’s (67)! At subsequent stops along the road added
Verdin (68), Cactus Wren (69), Caracara (70), an immature White-tailed Hawk (71
– would have been really bummed had I
missed this one in this county, too!), Turkey Vulture (72), flyover Dickcissels
(73), and Bewick’s Wren (74). At the
canal added Cave Swallow (75) and Snowy Egret (76), plus a Horned Lark (77)
closer to the north end in the ag fields.
Blue Grosbeak
Cassin's Sparrow
Now
it was time for the big show at the Island! J Got the Eurasian Collared Dove (78) out of
the way on the way, but once I got
near the Convention Centre, holy smokes!!
Cops were everywhere directing traffic, and there were mobs of people everywhere: people were even parking on
The Flats! That sure didn’t bode well
for finding a spot at the Convention Centre L, but I went by faith
and checked out the beach bums: Great
Blue Heron (79), Black-bellied Plover (80) in their fine breeding dress, and
Royal Terns (81) trying to impress the ladies.
Ruddy Turnstones (82) were also gorgeous, and one Least Tern (83) even
had a fish for his missus! Added
Sandwich Tern (84), Black Skimmer (85), Short-billed Dowitcher (86), and even a
couple of Common Terns (87) hiding in the mob!
Franklin’s Gulls (88) were showing well, and the Dunlins (89) were just
gorgeous with their red backs and black bellies! Most of the Sanderlings (90) looked to still
be in basic plumage, though… A
scruffy-looking Black Tern (91) flew by while a Caspian Tern (92) gave its
retching call, and a few White-rumped Sandpipers (93) flew by, leaving no doubt
as to their identity!
Black-bellied Plover
Lineup of larids
Franklin's Gulls (back) and Common Terns (front)
Snoozing Dunlin
Pseudo-snoozing Sanderling; this female is actually in her breeding plumage!
Short-billed Dowitchers
Ruddy Turnstones
With
baited breath I rolled into the Convention Centre and miraculously found a
spot! I headed to the water feature first, where the
reported Purple Gallinule (94) was just showing off! (A Yellow-green Vireo had also been reported,
but having already bagged that one at Resaca I didn’t look for it too
hard…) Mama Mottled Duck (95) and her
babies were there as well, and a female Indigo Bunting (96) briefly showed
herself. It was beginning to look rather
bleak, though, as far as the hoped-for “lots of migrants” was concerned; a
Ruby-throated Hummingbird (97) buzzed overhead, while finally a Gray-cheeked
Thrush (98) hopped out into the open. I
thought I heard a Cedar Waxwing, then tracked him down right overhead
(99)! In the “back yard” an Eastern Wood
Pewee got the #100 honor, while a Black-and-white Warbler (101) was the only
other migrant I could dig out. Looking
out over the Flats from the back of the CC added Reddish Egret (102) and a
Neotropic Cormorant (103) to the list.
By then the “tame” White Ibis (104) had shown up, but I was ready to
throw in the towel until I ran into Brad McKinney, who encouraged me to stick
it out as he had just seen both the Prairie and Blackpoll Warblers! About that time a group was on something and
asked his opinion: it was a Philadelphia Vireo (105)! I stuck close to Brad after that, and shortly
after adding a young male Orchard Oriole (106), Brad had the Prairie Warbler
(107) by the “corner bench”! Another
couple had reported a Common Loon out in the bay, so we headed for the
boardwalk, adding Green Heron (108), a flyby Baltimore Oriole (109),
Black-necked Stilts (110) in the “east pond”, a cackling Common Gallinule
(111), and a crying Sora (112). Sure
enough, a beat-up basic-plumaged Common Loon (113) was right off the pier
(funny I never saw him on previous trips)!
On the way back Brad found a Tennessee Warbler (114) deep in the
mangroves! I headed back to the Centre, where I planted myself at the water feature and Brad
went to the corner area, promising to give a shout if the Blackpoll Warbler
showed up! Didn’t take long, and shortly
a nice male Blackpoll became Bird #115!
Friendly Purple Gallinule
Cedar Waxwing
Young male Rose-breasted Grosbeak hiding out in the mangroves
Beat-up Common Loon that should have left a long time ago!
Interesting view of the bill...
After
thanking him profusely for helping me nail some good birds, I headed over to
the Birding Center, where a Golden-winged Warbler had been seen in their
butterfly garden. I heard some
Oystercatchers (116) scream by, and while no warbler popped up (except for a
Tennessee that another couple was ruminating over), an interesting empid
allowed close views and photos, and after eliminating all other possibilities I
at least narrowed it down to “Traill’s”, and made a gun-to-the-head decision to
call it an Alder (117) after some discussion, due to the eye ring (I rarely see
one on a Willow). Heading out on the
boardwalk added a beautiful Great Egret (118) with his plumes, the ubiquitous
Coots (119), and a female Summer Tanager (120) in that “secret” area by the
building Baceliza had told us about!
Continuing on, I was surprised to see what I assumed was the same loon,
now hauled out on a bank inside the boardwalk trail! Sadly, he didn’t look real good… I was also dismayed at the lack of
spoonbills, but managed to add Least (121), Pectoral (122), and Stilt
Sandpipers (123) to the list. Near the
end of the boardwalk a Northern Waterthrush (124) pinked and showed himself, and a Purple Martin (125) gurgled by the
water tower.
While most of my "consultants" weren't willing to go beyond "Traill's" on this one, a couple felt comfortable calling it an Alder Flycatcher!
Summer Tanager
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret decked out in his plumes
The hapless loon has made his way from the bay to the shore, which is a good indication that he's sick, as they only come to land in order to breed.
Note his foot off to the side
Pectoral Sandpipers
Headed
over to Sheepshead after that, where I ran into Brad again, but it was really dead; some Chimney Swifts (126)
flew over, and the same couple who had told us about the loon had cottoned me
onto a Least Flycatcher (127) flopping around the “sunny side”! I gave the place my normal 15 minutes, but
then decided to head on to Weaver Road.
Gray Catbird
This
was my only shot at specialty “grasspipers”, and was sweating a little when the
only thing I could kick up was a Brown-headed Cowbird (128)! A Loggerhead Shrike (129) was near the house
south of the sod farms, and a pair of Scissor-tailed Flycatchers (130)
frolicked along Jimenez Road. From there
went straight to the resaca at the Ebony Unit of Las Palomas WMA, where I added
Least Grebe (131) and Wilson’s Phalarope (132), but on a lark decided to check
“Rangerville Resaca” (which was bone dry the last time I came by with clients),
and this time it had water in it! It
still had quite a bit of “shoreline”, so was able to add Semipalmated (133) and
Spotted Sandpiper (134) to the list. Heading back down Jimenez and up onto the dike at Adams Garden Reservoir, a Common Ground Dove (135) shot by on the way, and was very happy to see a Roseate Spoonbill
(135) fly overhead and then land in the little canal!
Roseate Spoonbill (and chopped off Snowy Egret)
Last
stop was Tiocano Lake; there wasn’t much visible (and I had actually gotten
there earlier than I had last year – spent a lot more time on the Island last
time, I think…), but did catch a Black-crowned Night Heron (137) fly over the
marsh. After poking around a bit and
hearing a Least Bittern (138) cackle, I decided to just pull over near the one
spot where you can see open water, and just sit in the car and watch and
listen, seeing as I was facing east.
That was great, as eventually the King Rails (139) came through, and a
beautiful Yellow-crowned Night Heron (140) flew in! Heard the distinctive wheeze of a Fulvous
Whistling Duck (141), and before long he circled around overhead where I could
actually see him! Seeing as I had gotten
pretty much all I was gonna get there, I headed out, adding a singing Marsh
Wren (142) on the way.
Scissor-tailed Flycatcher at Tiocano Lake
That
would turn out to be the last bird of the day, as a quick look at the wetlands
at La Feria Nature Park added nothing but a good exercise walk… Oh, and Brad enlightened me as to the hubbub
on the Island: it was Cinco de
Mayo! Duh…
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